By Batrisyia Jay
KUALA LUMPUR — The three and half month Top E-Commerce Merchant competition came to a grand close at the awards ceremony held at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC) on 15 September 2018.
Part of the three-day Selangor Smart City and Digital Economy Convention 2018 co-organised by the Selangor Information Technology & E-Commerce Council (SITEC), Menteri Besar Incorporated Selangor (MBI), Smart Selangor Delivery Unit (SSDU), and Invest Selangor Berhad, the funfair-themed event sought to reward and recognize well-performing online merchants in Malaysia.
Officiated by YB Dato’ Teng Chang Khim, executive councillor with the Selangor State Government, the event saw a variety of performances, by a dance troupe, jugglers, and even stilt-walkers.
Dato’ Teng said that Malaysia’s transition towards a digital economy is an ongoing process that presents its own set of challenges as it proceeds and that the Selangor State Government, through SITEC, has set up initiatives in motion to aid the local merchants in transitioning to e-Commerce.
“Not only has the E-Commerce Education arm of SITEC reached out to more than 5,000 prospective e-merchants, the Online 100 initiative has also aided more than 400 brick and mortar businesses in transitioning to selling online, with a gross merchandise value of more than RM8 million,” said Dato’ Teng.
As part of the requirements needed to participate in this competition, participating e-merchants were required to sell their products in an online sales period during the competition.
“In the short span of 19 days, participants achieved RM 28 million sales over 222,000 orders, a testament to the quality and ability of our local e-merchants,” Dato’ Teng added.
In an exclusive interview with Selangor Journal, Chief Executive of the Selangor Information Technology and E-Commerce Council (SITEC), Yong Kai Ping said that the number of merchants participating for the program has increased over the years.
“What we’re looking forward to now is to support and push these merchants towards the international arena to either crossing borders into e-commerce towards the east, in China, and toward the west such as through Amazon as well,” said Yong.
“These are the two platforms we are looking forward to as we would be able to excel at it since we’ve already cultivated a group of new merchants that are able to apply the technology and provide good servicing to customers,” he said.
The champion, SEA Gamer Mall Sdn Bhd, went home with RM 10,000 in cash, a trophy and an official certificate from SITEC.
They are a fast-growing brand specializing in online gaming, digital goods and services, achieving 1600% growth over the past 10 years, and a global footprint in China, Indonesia and Thailand.
Grabbing RM 5,000 in cash, a trophy and an official certificate from SITEC is first runner up, Hermo Creative Sdn Bhd.
Hermo is Malaysia’s leading online beauty retailer dedicated to providing a wide selection of high-quality and affordable beauty products sourced from Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Europe, USA, as well as other internationally renowned beauty brands.
The second runner up, dahmakan (Farm to Fork Sdn Bhd), received RM 3,000 in cash, a trophy and an official certificate from SITEC.
Dahmakan is an online food delivery app service that delivers high quality, healthy and delicious food. Through utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) in logistics and production, they cater to the large Klang Valley market, with an eventual aim to conquer the Asian takeout market.
The other seven finalists went home with RM 1,000 in cash, a trophy and an official certificate from SITEC.
This year, two awards categories were added, the ‘Best Startup Award’, which was won by Wonderfly Holdings Sdn Bhd; and the ‘Top E-Commerce Service Provider’, which saw 14 awardees from industries such as logistics, payment gateways, online marketplaces and online media.
